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leaving service options is one for the employer and the trustees, rather than the State." The first part of the sentence is true. At the time these workers were made redundant, it was incumbent on the employer and the trustees to provide full information. The State, however … there is fair play. Fairness and justice were not applied here. That happened on the State’s watch and that of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. The Minister and the Government have legal advice that says they can just sit on their hands and let this injustice continue

back to the very beginning. Children's Health Ireland was legally established by Simon Harris in 2018. Yet, from its first days, it has lurched from crisis to crisis and the children who depend on the services have paid the price. CHI, as we know, was formed … provide a world-class service for children. Despite the Trojan work of healthcare workers in Crumlin, Temple Street and Cappagh, and I know that many people who work in these hospitals provide a tremendous service, the promise of providing a world-class service for all children never materialised

designated entities, there was never any intention to exclude them, and doing so would be likely to lead to further legal challenges on state aid and competition grounds. In addition, failure to address this issue could leave the legislation open to gaming. For instance, a designated entity could … Directive 2015/2366 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015, or the payment services directive. As part of this amendment, section 4 is proposed to be deleted, as the provisions of that section are no longer needed after the addition of a new section

report of the child maintenance review group into the social welfare system. This change to the social welfare means test came into legal effect from June 2024. As a result of this change, the full amount of child maintenance a person receives is no longer being assessed … assessments of approximately 15,800 people, something we can all agree is a positive measure. The means test or income assessments for other State services, such as the medical card, are a matter for the relevant Minister with responsibility for those payments or services. On foot

clear signals that EU Directive No. 2014/24 will be repealed and a less restrictive regime will be put in place. As such, the legal basis for several of these provisions will no longer apply. After careful consideration, the Government has decided to oppose the Bill because it could … agree that the State should act in the public interest. The intentions behind the Bill for the pursuit of quality as much as price are laudable. However, the Bill would likely have a negative impact on the ability of the State to seek value for money or deliver

that. It is leading the way and showing how this can be done within the legal and regulatory frameworks and all the other frameworks at play here. However, we, as a member state of the European Union, are saying, "No". I have been talking about the two-pronged … ping pong when it suits it between going through Europe and going it alone. There is no reason we should not be including services in this Bill

failure to ensure that when new homes were being delivered, adequate infrastructure services and public amenities were provided. This was an issue that affected every county in the State. While today there is no doubt that not enough homes are being delivered and particularly not enough social … particularly, public transport. One of the lessons we thought had been learned, particularly in the context of strategic development zones that have clear, legally binding phasing agreements for the delivery of homes, is that infrastructure, amenities and, crucially, public transport, should be delivered in parallel with the homes

Revised Estimates relate to several matters, including costs associated with international protection accommodation and the purchase of the Citywest Hotel, funding for criminal legal aid, and the criminal injuries compensation scheme agus ba mhaith liom aghaidh a thabhairt ar roinnt de na sean áiseanna seo. While the justice … location of IPAS accommodation. That includes cases such as the purchase of the City West Hotel, where State-run facilities are being developed. We all support the concept of State-run facilities, but that does not mean we neglect our responsibilities to engage with communities on matters that

client companies is in excess of 300,000 people, with more than 110,000 people employed in the information and communications services sector and more than 109,000 in modern manufacturing alone. This demonstrates the real economic activity taking place which is underpinned by the elevated levels … evidenced by the good jobs provided by multinational enterprises in the State. Tax is only one element of this story, with other factors such as: a young, educated workforce; political stability; a common law legal system; access to the EU market; ease of doing business; tax certainty

disapply our climate commitments or our national level targets, but recognises an urgent need for the completion of major infrastructure projects in the State. The Bill provides for the disapplication of section 15 of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 in very limited circumstances … decision-making that will lead to accelerated infrastructure while also preserving the rights of the public to access the courts on the legality of the decisions of public bodies. The motion also raised a number of concerns with respect to data centres. Data centres are central to Ireland

Forces or the Civil Service or former ministerial officeholders, to give evidence before the High Court. This would be subject to the person concerned having the right to demonstrate that answering the questions would give rise to a risk of prejudice to their legal rights … High Court judge. In considering this proposal, it is necessary to recall that the inquiry is established under the law of another sovereign state. The chairman of the inquiry is necessarily limited to applying the law of the United Kingdom and were he to be assigned a role

Over its lifetime, NAMA has delivered significant outcomes for the State. They include the redemption of €30.2 billion in senior debt in 2017, three years ahead of schedule, thereby eliminating a major contingent liability for the State; the full repayment of its €1.6 billion in subordinated debt … scale and complexity of this liquidation were unprecedented in the State's history. Since then, the special liquidators have disposed of all assets; resolved the overwhelming majority of borrower relationships, asset disposals and cross-border legal issues; paid all unsecured creditors in full, including interest, in respect

legal advice you want on the basis of what you pay for and I do not see this as being very much different. We have heard from many experts who say there is nothing stopping us from implementing the occupied territories Bill for goods and services now. This … supremacist Zionists who want to remove the Palestinian people. Benjamin Netanyahu has also always been clear that there will never be a Palestinian state. We have a ceasefire of sorts. It is very difficult to call what is being proposed a peace plan. A peace plan that does

contributed to the funding of essential services on the national primary and secondary road network across the country. Examples of these services include pavement repair and renewal, safety and junction improvements and safeguarding the network against the increasing impact of climate change. There is no doubt but that … This has enabled the State to risk share with the private sector and avoid incurring upfront costs. When the Government introduced the 2020 action plan for insurance reform, there was a recognition that deep structural issues were driving Irish premiums above international comparators. Legal costs were excessive, personal

very short supply across all dimensions. In addition to the Ukraine response, the increase in applications for international protection places a legal duty on the State to accommodate the additional applicants. Emergency centres have been opened in all parts of the country, and intensive efforts were made … greater focus on dispersal strategies as we work toward a more stable and sustainable accommodation system in this sector. The international protection procurement service, IPPS, tries to ensure, in as far as possible, that international protection applicants are not located in remote locations. However, given the demand

Ireland’s bilateral trade in goods and services with Canada. That trade increased from about €3.2 billion in 2016 to more than €10 billion in 2023. My Department is continuing to work with the Office of Parliamentary Counsel and legal advisers on the drafting of the arbitration (amendment … just trade. Supporting the Irish diaspora in Canada and promoting Irish cultural links continue to be priorities for the Government. The Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, emphasised this in his meetings with a number of diaspora organisations during his visit to Toronto last month. A landmark cultural initiative

terms of the drivers of IPAS and the "profiteering", as Deputy Carthy referred to it, in respect of IPAS. We have a legal obligation to provide accommodation to people who seek international protection. If people say that is wrong, they should say it. I do not think … number of people coming into the country claiming international protection. I want to reduce the spend of the State on international protection accommodation services. I have managed to reduce it from last year to this year. The budget last year was €1.2 billion; the budget this year

national development plan is a plan for continued State failure to provide the basic services that working-class people need. There are no big new ideas in it. It is doubling down on a failed model of relying on the private market to deliver. It never … cases, the scandals people hear about regarding waste of public funds are really cases of private companies ripping off the State. Hospital consultants set up private companies to profit from insourcing in the same under-resourced public hospitals they are paid to work in as public servants

services can be logged and tracked, providing an avenue for the detection and prosecution of crime both within the State and across the European Union. I commend service providers for their active engagement on the implementation of the EU e-evidence package and their recognition that they … critical task of ensuring service providers comply with lawful requests and that fundamental rights, data protection and privacy rights are upheld. This is not a small undertaking and it will require co-operation between service providers and judicial authorities alike. Service providers have dual obligations. They are both

including for securing of a new mandate from the Government to continue funding at an enhanced level while ensuring an adequate legal basis and compliance with state aid rules. In due course, I will seek the Government's approval to progress legislation to affect the funding to provide … space for An Post to accelerate the transformation and commercialisation of the network to ensure a relevant, commercially viable network delivering more services to citizens and small businesses. An Post is a commercial semi-State body with a mandate to act commercially. An Post has statutory responsibility

both the SMEs and public buyers, which is important. Every year, as has been said, billions of euro are spent by the State on goods, services and works. This brings obligations, but it also brings huge opportunity. Public procurement has significant potential to support SMEs and, with that … simplification of the current complex legal code and a reorientation of procurement to act as a tool for steering investment and increasing competitiveness. That is what I want to see as Minister of State. I want to make sure that we are using our public procurement process

latter scheme increased from €20,000 to €100,000 with 53 applications received by 16 February 2026. In 2018, the OPW completed the State’s largest ever flood-risk study - the CFRAM programme. It covered 80% of the primary flood risk in Ireland and identified solutions to protect … national emergency co-ordination group. Stage I of the national flood forecasting and warning service was completed in 2023. Met Éireann now provides daily flood guidance to local authorities and State agencies. Stage II is now under the Government task force on emergency planning. It will deliver more

things are completely unacceptable, outrageous responses to a failure to manage a budget. In circumstances where bills for external consultants or legal advices outside of the State structure are still being paid or where, for example, there has not been evidence of non-pay savings over a three … okay for the State to be required, or have pressure placed on it, to put additional CT machines somewhere that one is not being used to the optimum capacity. Those are the savings and productivity necessary to deal with the sort of service we want to deliver

Féin's junior spokesperson on domestic and gender violence, I meet with many survivors who are all highly critical of the practice and legality of their counselling session notes being used in court settings. They universally described feeling violated and revictimised by the seizure of their private thoughts … imposing on brave survivors. Let us recognise counselling notes as a private and therapeutic space rather than as evidence. The Minister of State outlined the violence against women and girls and so much that needs to be done, including so much legislation, by this Government

number of them through the Irish Tax Institute - and those of the members of the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, and Taoiseach in advance of publication of the Bill. The proposed Bill seeks to give appeals commissioners discretion to direct whether … their private and family life. As I stated earlier, I am open to further engagement on this. I do not wish to prejudge what the pre-legislative scrutiny might say but I imagine it may require further legal engagement with the Office of the Attorney General. If there